FX.co ★ Philippine Inflation Rises To 4-Month High

The consumer price inflation in the Philippines reported a slight increase in April, reaching the highest peak in four months. This boost was primarily triggered by escalating food costs, as illustrated in data released on Tuesday by the Philippine Statistical Authority.

In April, the consumer price index (CPI) grew by 3.8 percent on a year-over-year basis, a small increase from 3.7 percent in March. Contrary to economists' predictions, the inflation rate failed to hit the predicted 4.1 percent.

Regardless, the inflation rate maintained its position within the target range of 2 to 4 percent, a goal set by the country's central bank.

The core inflation rate, which does not include the prices of selected food and energy items, similarly increased in April to 3.5 percent, up from March's figure of 3.2 percent.

A reported increment in the annual price growth of food items to 6.3 percent in April, up from 5.7 percent in the previous month, was witnessed. Concurrently, transportation costs exhibited faster growth at 2.6 percent, compared to a 2.1 percent increase in March.

On the other hand, there was a slight decrease of 0.1 percent in consumer prices in April on a monthly basis. This differs from initial expectations of a 0.2 percent increase.